The Federal Decree-Law No. 33/2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (“Labour Law”) and Cabinet Decision No. 1/2022 on the Implementing Regulation of Federal Decree-Law No. 33/2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (“Labour Regulation”) lay down the different leaves that employees in the UAE are entitled to.
It must be noted that the Labour Law and Labour Regulations apply to the mainland companies in the private sector only, and do not extend to the Dubai International Financial Centre (“DIFC”) and the Abu Dhabi Global Market (“ADGM”).
Leave entitlements
Employees that are subject to the Labour Law are entitled to benefit from the following types of leaves:
1. Annual leave
Employees entitled to a fully paid annual leave of thirty (30) days after they have completed six months of service. However, if their term of service is between six (6) months to one (1) year, they are entitled to a paid leave of two (2) days every month.
The annual leaves must be utilised by the employees in the year of the leave entitlement. In case the employees are left with any unutilised annual leave, they may carry over half of the remaining leaves to the following year with the approval of their employer. Alternatively, employees can request for a cash allowance in lieu of the balance leaves.
Part-time employees are entitled to an annual leave according to the actual working hours that they spend working with the employer. The number of annual leaves is calculated by first converting the total working hours into working days. The number of working days determined is then divided by the number of working days in the year, which is then multiplied by the legally prescribed leaves.
2. Maternity leave
Female employees are entitled to sixty (60) days of maternity leave. The Labour Law entitles female employees to the same amount of maternity leave if they birthed a stillborn child or if the child was born and then died, provided the birth happened after six (6) months of pregnancy. The first forty-five (45) days of the maternity leave are fully paid, whereas the following fifteen (15) days are with half pay. The maternity leave may be availed from the last date of the month preceding the expected month of delivery.
The maternity leave may be extended by the female worker in the following circumstances:
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- If she or her child fall ill, and such illness results from pregnancy or childbirth and does not enable her to work, she may cease working without pay for up to forty-five (45) continuous or intermittent days; or
- If she gives birth to a sick or disabled child and whose condition requires a constant companion, then is entitled to a fully paid leave of thirty (30) days after the end of her maternity leave. She is also entitled to extend this leave by thirty (30) more days without pay.
3. Sick leave
Employees can avail sick leave of up to ninety (90) days per year, after their probation period. The first fifteen (15) days of the leave will be fully paid, the following thirty (30) days with half pay, and the subsequent period would be without pay. The employer may grant an employee an unpaid sick leave during their probation period, based on a medical report stating the necessity of granting the leave.
In case the sickness resulted from the employee’s misconduct, for example, consumption of alcohol or drugs, or if they violated any safety instructions or regulations as per law, they would not be entitled to a paid sick leave.
4. Bereavement leave
Employees are entitled to a paid bereavement leave for five (5) days in case of the death of their spouse, and a leave of three (3) days in the instance of the death of their parent, child, sibling, grandparents or grandchildren.
5. Parental leave
Employees (whether they are a father or mother) are entitled to a paid parental leave of five (5) working days, either continuously or intermittently, within a period of six (6) months from the date of their child’s birth.
6. Study leave
A study leave of ten (10) working days may be granted per year to an employee to sit for the examinations at an education institution in the UAE that they are regularly studying in.
7. Sabbatical leave
An employee who is a UAE national is entitled to a paid sabbatical leave to serve in the national military and reserve force.
8. Unpaid leave
Employees can avail unpaid leaves other than those that are mentioned above, after obtaining the approval of their employer. These unpaid leaves will not be counted within the employees’ service period or within the period of participation in the retirement scheme.
Termination
In the event that the employer or employee wishes to terminate the employment contract during the period of leave, the warning period agreed upon in the employment contract would take effect only after the employee has returned from the leave, unless it is agreed otherwise.
If the employer wishes to terminate the employment contract due to the lack of the employee’s health fitness, it may not do so unless the employee has exhausted all the leaves that they are legally entitled to.
Conclusion
The new Labour Law was largely welcomed as a step in the right direction as it provided for additional types of leaves that were absent in the previous labour legislation, study leave, bereavement leave and paid maternity leave in case of birth of a child with disability. Further, the Labour Law also accounts for part-time workers and provides for their right to avail leaves. The variety of leaves provides employees with a certain amount of flexibility to tend to their personal needs and families while also fulfilling their professional commitments, and overall promotes balance between their work and personal life.